John Bedingfield - RE Lance Corporal 68346

[PRC]

Just checking that no-one else is working on this one.

John Bedingfield attested on the 22nd February 1915 in the Royal Engineers I.W.T. Despite a recurring stiff shoulder following his typhus innoculation he was posted to France, landing on the 12th May 1915. During a further hospitalisation as a result of the shoulder, tuberculosis was diagnosed. He was discharged on the 6th September 1916 as no longer physically fit for war service as a result of the tuberculosis, which was deemed to have been aggravated by his service.

Image courtesy FindMyPast

His ability to work was reduced 100% and despite several periods in sanatoriums over the next couple of years it never dropped below that.

I have six pension cards relating to John and his widow, but only two mention his death.

1 has died of disease 25th May 1919.
1 has date of death 22nd May 1919.

On the 1911 Census of England & Wales the 25 year old John Bedingfield, his wife Lillie and two of their children, John, (3) and Noel, (1), were recorded living on Yarmouth Road Road, Stalham, Norfolk. John was recorded as a Wheelwright and Carpenter, born Methwold, Norfolk.

The above page from his discharge record shows him as aged 30 at the time of his discharge.

The most likely death is therefore that of a John Bedingfield, aged 34, which was recorded in the Smallburgh District in the April to June quarter, (Q2), of 1919. The Smallburgh Civil Registration District included the Civil Parish of Stalham. His widow gave her address as York Road, Stalham.

Next step for me would be to purchase the death certificate - unless of course his case is already trundling through the system

Cheers,
Peter

[PaulC78]

Hi Peter, can confirm that IFCP haven't put him forward so he's all yours!

EDIT: Buried at St Mary's Stalham: https://www.gravestonephotos.com/public/gravedetails.php?grave=282914

Edited 9 March , 2022 by PaulC78

[PRC]

9 hours ago, PaulC78 said:

Hi Peter, can confirm that IFCP haven't put him forward so he's all yours!

EDIT: Buried at St Mary's Stalham: https://www.gravestonephotos.com/public/gravedetails.php?grave=282914

Thanks for checking IFCP Paul and also reminding there was one more check to do at my end. The Stalham WI documented the headstones in the church and adjoining public cemeteries and have John Bedingfield down as being in grave O2, which I had in my notes. I was planning to go out and try to find it while I wait for the death certificate to come back - and while I can still afford to put petrol in the car

But after your reply I checked out the original WI document. Grave O1 is a family headstone for the Clarke family and references their son Alfred Charles Clarke who was killed in action in France in 1915. I have a picture of that and I'm currently re-writing the piece I did on him many years ago.

I visited the graveyard back in July 2008 and had already got into the habit of taking pictures of headstones of men and women who died in the 1914-1921 period and who were of an age that meant they might have served. I've just revisited that file and lo and behold -

So date of death is definately 22nd May 1919. Now to splash the cash!

Cheers,
Peter

[PRC]

Death certificate received yesterday.

Case submitted today. As well as the usual standard screen message about high volumes, long wait, thanks for your patience, etc I actually received an e-mail with a reference number. What next - regular automated updates? An online portal to check progress? I'm grateful for what the CWGC does but this sort of stuff came with off the shelf customer service websites 15 years ago and makes staffs lives easier not harder.

Cheers,
Peter

[Matlock1418]

16 hours ago, PRC said:

Case submitted today. As well as the usual standard screen message about high volumes, long wait, thanks for your patience, etc I actually received an e-mail with a reference number. What next - regular automated updates? An online portal to check progress?

Peter,

Good to see you have another case into CWGC - Good luck.

In my experience - don't hold your breath for updates, and certainly no portal! :-(

M

[PRC]

Confirmation received that it has passed the first hurdle and now has a non-commemoration case number - 11550.

Different to the original number provided, but I can live with that. Last case I submitted got to this stage on the 21st January 2022 when it was case 11425 - so 125 non-commemoration cases have hit the system in just over 2 months. Thats roughly 750 a year, and no doubt the bulk are Army. So if they all have to go through just one person at the NMA no wonder there is a backlog, particularly if they are being dealt with in the order submitted rather than triaged.

Cheers,
Peter

[Matlock1418]

21 hours ago, PRC said:

Confirmation received that it has passed the first hurdle and now has a non-commemoration case number - 11550.

Well done Peter - that will be it through CWGC in the first instant [Doubt they told who had cleared it - apparently they have a Commemorations Case Manager, so perhaps evaluated by them??]

And now likely on to NAM with that new ARMY case number - As you say a likely considerable backlog there based on our current understanding of their resourcing.

And/Or then on to a panel of of unknown arbitrators [well unknown to me as they have not been dentified to me in another case I have tried to follow-up on - despite requesting such info.]

= Hard to know who you are dealing with / who you have to convince and what their individual opinions and explanations are.

Wish the whole non-comm process was more a lot more transparent.

M

[PRC]

Just seen he is on the list of new CWGC commemorations added today to the United Kingdom Book of Remembrance.

We shall remember them,

Peter

 

[Matlock1418]

2 hours ago, PRC said:

Just seen he is on the list of new CWGC commemorations added today to the United Kingdom Book of Remembrance.

We shall remember them,

Well done Peter - at last BEDINGFIELD has been commemorated. 

Of course also well done for all the other new commemorations in that other thread - IFCP and other independant submissions. 

M

Edited 17 December , 2022 by Matlock1418
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